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Forrest Wood Cup
Forrest Wood Cup wows ’em with stellar event
Organizers vow to bring the major fishing tournament
back to Lanier, Gwinnett Arena
By Pamela A. Keene
 When
the winner was announced, the crowd went wild. Confetti and balloons
fell from the ceiling of the Gwinnett Arena, lights flashed and the
reaction from the audience was deafening. “I just couldn’t believe
it,” said Forrest Wood Cup Champion Kevin Hawk. “I’ve never seen
such a celebration.”
The
awards ceremony was just part of the four-day tournament that
included a recreational expo and tens of thousands of people coming
to the Gwinnett Arena and Laurel Park in Hall County to watch the
anglers take to the water in the early morning.
“It
was a very successful event,” said Stacey Dickson, president of the
Lake Lanier Convention and Visitors Bureau, which helped host FLW
Outdoor’s Forrest Wood Cup. “By Sunday, it was standing room only
and the arena had to open the club level to accommodate all the
spectators. The FLW people really know how to put on a great event.”
Dickson said that in addition to the immediate national attention
drawn to Lanier, the residual effects of the tournament will be
long-lasting. “We tracked more than 200 news stories from
television, radio and newspapers while the event was here and that
doesn’t even count all the magazine articles and follow-up. All this
related to the fishing tournament and really showcased Lake Lanier.
We had media coverage from all across North America for this ‘Super
Bowl’ of bass fishing.”
Tournament officials were also pleased by the location and the 2010
event.
“The
Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Lanier was a great event and one the fans
and the community welcomed and supported,” said Trisha Blake,
president of FLW Outdoors Marketing Division. “We were proud to have
our marquee event held there. Gov. Perdue, his staff, the entire
state of Georgia, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources,
Laurel Park, Gwinnett County and the city of Duluth, and the Georgia
National Guard were great to work with and we could not have had
such a successful event without all their contributions and
assistance. We are definitely looking at coming back to Lake Lanier
for a future tournament.”
The
Georgia Department of Natural Resources also had great things to say
about the tournament.
“The
Forrest Wood Cup coming to Georgia did exactly what the governor and
the DNR had in mind when Gov. Perdue launched the Go Fish
Initiative,” said Lauren Curry, director of public affairs with the
Georgia DNR. “The new infrastructure at Laurel Park was imperative
to attract a tournament of the caliber and size of the Forrest Wood
Cup. They’ve said publicly several times that they’d be back, and
we’d love to have them.”
The
success of the event has already spawned interest from other major
fishing tournaments as well.
Dickson said that the tournament has never come back to the same
location before. “They’ve been back to the same state, but never the
same exact location,” she said. “We think they might be back as soon
as 2012 or 2013 and we’ll be ready to welcome them.”
Winner still
‘floored’ by success
By Pamela A. Keene
 He
adopted Lake Lanier as home for about 10 months before the FLW’s
Forrest Wood Cup came to town, and his hard work paid off in spades.
Kevin Hawk, formerly of Southern California, walked away with
$600,000 in prize money for learning how to fish the lake.
“I’m
still floored by the whole thing,” he said. “My sole purpose in
moving here last November was to learn about the lake and have a
central location to fish other FLW tournaments. I guess it paid
off.”
Hawk
made a few friends during his time at Lanier, including the maker of
the swarming hornet fish head spin, his prize-winning lure. “The
lure was designed specifically for fishing in Lake Lanier, and
although I had fished with it out West, it proved to be a winning
lure,” he said.
Additionally, he had several mentors: Chad Boggs, Larry Hurley and
Nick Hensley, who all fished local tournaments with Hawk. “I had the
opportunity to fish with a lot of professionals and learned
something different from each one,” he said. “Lanier – because it’s
deep and fairly clear – reminds me of the lakes back home in
California. I felt right at home here from the beginning.”
Hawk, a native of Ramona, Calif., won the tournament with a 20-bass
total of 50 pounds and 14 ounces, a full 2 pounds, six ounce margin
over the second-place finisher, Cody Meyer of Grass Valley, Calif.
He outfished a total of 77 other professional anglers over four
days.
The
Forrest Wood Cup will be broadcast on VERSUS’ “FLW Outdoors” on
October 10 from 12:30 to 1:30 ET. Hosted by Jason Harper, the show
reaches approximately 500 million households worldwide.
Junior World
Champions crowned
The
2010 National Guard Junior World Championship was also held
simultaneously on Lake Lanier. The winners were Greg Zellers of
Winamac, Ind., representing the 15-18 age group and Shane Edgar from
Glendale, Ariz., representing the 11-14 age group.
The
pair won $5,000 in scholarships each plus thousands of dollars in
merchandise.
Final results:
11-14 Age Division:
Name
State/Division Fish Weight
1 Shane Edgar AZ/Western
1/1 2-0
2 Ryan Spencer IL/Northern
1/1 1-11
3 Andrew Honigman MO/Central 1/1
1-5
4 Regan Green GA/Southern
0 0
5 Adrian Forbes VT/Eastern
0 0
6 Ari Rosenzweig NJ/MidAtlantic 0
0
15-18 Age Division:
Name
State/Division Fish Weight
1 Greg Zellers IN/Northern
1/1 3-7
2 Zach Whitten WV/Mid-Atlantic 1/1 1-9
3 Drake Young MO/Southern
0 0
4 Josh Paxton NV/Western
0 0
5 Shane Cantley SC/Southern
0 0
6 Nicholas Deering ME/Eastern
0 0
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